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CO2 laser plays "Want You Gone"

Wasn't sure if this should go here or in the Games&Rigs forum, so I flipped a coin. And here you go.

So I took the line at the end of an article on Kotaku as a challenge.
Audio's not great and my crappy camera keeps having a seizure when trying to focus on things that are too close (and the minimum fixed focus is way too far away), but the gist is still there. Figured I'd post a link here since I first saw the link to Kotaku's article in The PA Report.

Anyway, thought some of you might think its kinda cool. Using lasers in non-standard ways and all

See a lot of you next weekend, I'm sure!

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Posts

This isn't the kind of thing that would get its own individual thread; if you find a video or bit of media related to something, it usually goes in a thread related to that content, in this case, a Portal thread, or a Valve-related thread.

Also, it might've been easier to just link to the Kotaku article, as opposed to your handcam footage of the video.

The problem is that the OP for this thread is just a video of a CO2 laser playing a song from a video game. It's not particularly robust enough to keep a thread going for 100 pages, and there's not a lot that can be said about it, which is why it would be better off in a preexisting thread related to Portal or Valve in some way; people can comment on it, but keep talking about a larger overarching topic that can go for 100 pages.

The problem is that the OP for this thread is just a video of a CO2 laser playing a song from a video game. It's not particularly robust enough to keep a thread going for 100 pages, and there's not a lot that can be said about it, which is why it would be better off in a preexisting thread related to Portal or Valve in some way; people can comment on it, but keep talking about a larger overarching topic that can go for 100 pages.

It turns out you haven't got a mod badge. You can tell this in two different ways:

1. You do not have a badge that says "moderator"
2. The fucking sun hasn't burned out of the sky

I guess I was wrong, I did post something controversial! In hindsight, maybe there was a little ego in the posting. But I thought it came out pretty cool and I really wanted to share! I mean, I first saw the video that inspired me to make this one on this web site. Probably should have posted it to the Art forum. Oh well.

Either way, thanks for the compliments, and to answer Marcus' question, yes, there is a way to get better quality video: I need to purchase a non-shitty camera.

I think the next version will be done with a different camera, and also with an independent microphone. The actual audio quality really doesn't come out that well due to all the background noise, including the hissing that comes from the material removal itself at the baseline energy level. There's sort of a curve where if I tune it down so that there's no etching with no audio, then the music comes out really choppy (as seen when the song first starts). If I turn the tuning up so that the laser's too high, the audio is *really* clear to the human ear, but it overloads the microphone and sounds muffled. And the autofocus suuucks at close range

I guess I was wrong, I did post something controversial! In hindsight, maybe there was a little ego in the posting. But I thought it came out pretty cool and I really wanted to share! I mean, I first saw the video that inspired me to make this one on this web site. Probably should have posted it to the Art forum. Oh well.

general rule of internet foruming: lurk a bit before posting. each forum has its own, erm, "culture". SE++ is no different.

well, it's different, but in other ways.

same will go for the Art forum. they're actually a lot more selective about threads there, so lurk a bit, check out the current threads and see how they run. the Art forum prizes criticism and improvement. it's not a place just to show off your stuff, unless you're also looking for critiques and tips on improving.

If you're looking at a separate mic, you're probably gonna wanna look into response patterns and sound pressure levels. And if the music thing is not something you're gonna do on the regular, there are places that rent sound equipment. But if the laser and etching stuff is something you do professionally or as a dedicated hobby, buying a good camera instead of renting one could definitely be a good investment.

I give him all the credit in the world for using the laser as an actual *instrument*, with all the number punching and listenting to tones that's involved. This guy's done a great job with what amounts to a hybrid digital/analog synthesizer and sequencer. In contrast, I'm using the laser as a speaker, which can reproduce much more complex sounds and has its own series of settings that need tweaking.

Its sort of a battle between apples and oranges, if you know what I mean.

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FearghaillMidgardI hear some secret agents only get cars.Registered Userregular

Appreciate you bringing this to our attention, but Kuchera already covered it and making a new thread, especially your first, to show off your youtube, is not really how we do things here. If you want to share it in the YouTube thread or another place, that's something else.

Everyone else, if you have a problem with a thread, use the report button and leave the modding to those of us cursed to clean up after you.